Rohnert Park Developer Mike Rosen says he does not travel much, but the trip to Houston he is taking next week is expected to be interesting and exciting.

Rosen will be an alternate delegate when the GOP convention meets in the Houston Astrodome. There are three delegates for each congressional district and each delegate has an alternate.

Rosen is a member of the State Central Republican committee. He was appointed as a delegate to the state convention in 1982 by Assemblyman Bill Filante. Since then he has been to two state conventions a year for a total of 20 conventions. He also attended the 1988 national convention in New Orleans.

He says the state and national conventions are similar in format. “You get to hear what is important to the other states,” he said, adding that right now the states are all vying for federal money.

Rosen said he expects the Republicans will choose President George Bush as well as vice President Dan Quayle to represent the party in the November election. But what Rosen looks forward to most is the debate that precedes the adoption of the party’s platform.

“This is the culmination of the programs that the Republican party adopts for the direction the country should move in,” he said of the convention.

“One of the most exciting parts is the national flavor of it,” said Rosen. “To hear what people from other parts of the country have to say is interesting.” While in Houston, Rosen will be phoning Sonoma County to up-date us on the convention. He will be calling radio station KSRO every morning at 9:15 a.m.

What is notable about this year’s California delegation, said Rosen, is that women and minorities are well represented this election year. He also noted that the Republican delegation usually consists of a large percentage of elected officials, though he guessed that no more than 10 percent of this year’s delegates hold elected offices. Rosen says that the Sonoma County delegation is made up of a part of a philosophical point of view but we don’t have to agree with everything in the party’s platform,” he said. “ It takes a wide variety of people with different points of view to make up a party.”He adds that since many politicians are out of touch with their constituents they have become ineffective. But the convention is an opportunity for someone like him to have his voice heard. “The big deal is the debate…the exchange of ideas,” he said. “ I watched the Democratic convention almost insatiably,” said Rosen. “It was important to me to know what the differences were between the parties.” Though the Republicans will debate many issues, such as abortion and the international trade balance, Rosen said he feels the most important issue facing the country is the economy.

Irene Hilsendager’s column each week touches on moments in the history of Cotati, Rohnert Park and Penngrove.